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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. season — in sport
  3. press — a publisher
  4. race — a contest
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. bear — the animal
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. race — humankind
  9. bear — the animal
  10. shower — to wash
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. stock — shares
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. mate — a friend
  15. press — to push
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. press — newspapers
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. race — the arms race
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. stock — goods
  22. mate — a partner
  23. mate — to breed
  24. shower — rain

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com